Exclusive: President Biden’s First Seven Major Actions in Office

SWITZERLAND, JANUARY 21 – On Wednesday, January 20th, 2021, Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th President of the United States of America, ending a tumultuous era of Donald Trump’s presidency. Here are seven of the major actions of the new president since resuming office hours ago.

1. Biden Removes Winston Churchill’s Sculpture from the Oval Office:  Biden has seemingly removed a bust of Sir Winston Churchill from the Oval Office, amid fears the UK and US’ relationship could be fraught under the new President. Mr Biden’s re-designed Oval Office “does not have the bust on display”, according to the Washington Post.

2. Removes Travel Ban on Nigeria: On his first day in office, President Joe Biden is beginning the immense task of dismantling former President Donald Trump’s nativist legacy on immigration, issuing an executive order to end Trump’s controversial travel ban on noncitizens from 13 countries, including Nigeria. Today’s Echo gathers that he has already signed an executive order to that effect.

3. Threatens to Sack White House Staff Who Disrespect Others: President Joe Biden pledged to restore dignity to the US government on Wednesday, warning his new staff that they will be ‘fired on the spot’ if he catches them being disrespectful to others. 

The 46th US President made the threat as he swore in around 1,000 appointed political aides during a virtual ceremony held in the White House State Dining Room Wednesday evening.

4. Rejoins Paris Climate Accord: President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed an executive order re-joining the U.S. into the Paris climate accord, his first major action to tackle global warming. The global pact was forged five years ago among nearly 200 nations to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Trump withdrew from the agreement in 2017.

5. Stops US Withdrawal from WHO: In one of his first acts as president, Joe Biden walked back the former administration’s plan to withdraw the United States from the World Health Organization. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, will participate in the organization’s executive meeting this week, according to a fact sheet released by the Biden-Harris transition team.

6. Halts Construction of Mexican Wall: Biden issued an executive order halting construction of a wall along the U.S. border with Mexico, dealing a blow to one of Trump’s signature policy goals meant to keep South American immigrants out of the US.

7. Signs Order Mandating Use of Face Masks: The new president also signed an executive order mandating that people wear masks in all federal buildings and on federal lands in an effort to fight the spread of the coronavirus. “Wearing masks isn’t a partisan issue — it’s a patriotic act that can save countless lives. “It’s time to mask up, America,” Biden wrote on the official presidential Twitter account.